Budgeting On A Weekend

It’s finally weekend! And aside from doing the house chores, I’m also doing the budgeting today. I normally do the marketing either on a Saturday or on a Sunday since it’s only on a weekend that I have so much time to think and review our budget list.
If you’re on a tight situation (like we are now), I always consider a few questions while doing my marketing budget. Here are my only two ‘guide’ questions:

1. What are the basic commodities that need to be replenished? (rice, sugar, coffee, detergent soap, etc.)
2. What will be my daily menus for the week?

It’s really important to list down everything before going to the market or the grocery. Having a list on your side will help you avoid forgetting something very essential. This could also help you save a lot in transportation expenses because it will prevent you from going back and forth to the grocery store. It would be okay to forget something if the grocery store is just a short walk from your home but it will still waste your precious time and energy. The time you have allotted for relaxation might be eaten up because you need to go back to the grocery to buy some eggs. A budget and a list of things to buy is a must!
I also suggest keeping all those receipts so that when you do the budgeting, you already have the knowledge of the prices of the things you’re going to buy. Going back to the ‘guide’ questions, it would be good if you keep on asking these questions to yourself even if you’re not in a tight situation. Asking those questions to yourself while doing the budgeting will really be beneficial in the long run. It can help you accumulate a big chunk of savings.
Are you also doing the budget for your family? Maybe you can share here your own budgeting style. Go hit that comment button now =)

100 Simple Ways to Increase Savings (PART 2)

I’ve been busy with work lately. Sorry for the long period of not posting anything. Well, I’m doing my best to keep my promise to update my blog atleast thrice a week.
This is the second part of my previous post. Here are another five more simple ways to increase savings.
1. Enjoy dinner date at home with home cooked meals. Avoid eating in restaurants because doing it can definitely save you a lot of moolah. Spend time with your husband or wife cooking meals. This would not only help you fatten up your savings account, it can also be your chance to bond.
2. Save that water from dishwashing for toilet flushing. This will positively save you from sky rocketing water bills. A decrease in the water bill means additional savings.
3. Say hello to land line phones. If there’s an available land line phones, and if the one you want to talk or text to also have a land line service, give him a ring. Using land line phones rather than mobile phones will help you lower your mobile phone bills thus increasing your savings again.
4. Organize a garage sale! Oh I love garage sale! Haha. This is your chance to really increase your savings. For sure, you have a lot of things that are no longer appealing to you. But for others, those stuffs might be useful. So dig on those storage boxes and let all your items out. Display these items just right in front of your house. The neighborhood will definitely be so happy to shop.
5. Early to bed, early to rise. Waking up early means never having to rush. It also means having longer time to prepare thus avoiding forgetting some things to bring. Having a very tight time to prepare could lead to forgetting those important things to be brought to the school or to the office. So there’s a chance for you to go home again during lunch time. That would be cost you another set of transportation expense. So save your money from traveling back and forth from the house by waking up early and preferably by preparing all those things needed to be brought the night before.
Do you have anything in mind to share? Maybe you could help me complete my 100 simple ways to increase savings. Go hit that comment button or email me at jggpp0103@gmail.com. Have a happy Wednesday!

100 Simple Ways to Increase Savings (PART 1)

There are more than a hundred ways to increase one’s savings. Some of these are so simple to do everyday but some of us are just plain too lazy to do it. I’m one of those. Haha.

For this blog post, I will start to enumerate hundred simple ways to save money. I cannot list all of them for now, so this will just be the first part. I’ve decided to divide this into twenty (20) blog posts. So now, I’ll enumerate the first five now.

1. Save that lunch money. Bring packed lunch. This would give us a super big savings after a week.

2. Skip those acidic drinks. Yep. Sodas are not good for the health. So skipping these drinks will not only help lessen sugar and acid intake, it will also give u a healthy and happy pocket.

3. Switch to veggies. Meats nowadays are highly priced. Switching to vegetable meals or ingredients for cooking family meals could highly increase weekly marketing savings. This would also give us the same result as no. 2, healthy hearts and pockets. ♥

4. Walk. And walk. J Yes. If you’re on your weekend window shopping mode, walk the distance between the malls that you wanted to go to. Walking will also give us happy and healthy hearts and pockets. ♥

5. Reuse. Recycle. How many plastic bags do we normally consume when we do the weekly marketing? Always carry a plastic bag from home or a reusable bag like the one that SM started when going to the markets. Though plastic bags cost only P2.00 or P3.00, accumulating these coins could increase savings to P288.00 in a year. (If marketing schedule is once a week, P3.00/plastic bag x 2 pieces x 4 weeks x 12 months) Reusing those plastic bags at home can not only give you an annual savings but it can also make Mother Earth happy. ♥


All I’ve listed above are very easy to do. But yet some of us just lack discipline. So let’s start practicing these first five simple ways and give our piggy bank the chance to be happier and healthier as well.

On Credit Cards, Money and Discipline

One of the famous adages says, “It takes two to tango”. Yes, it definitely needs two persons to be able to enjoy a tango dance just as it takes two living beings to create life. In handling finances, money and discipline goes together. To be able to maximize the benefits of money in our life, we need to be wise and disciplined in spending and investing as well.

I have always been blessed financially. I was even given the opportunity to own four (yes four, as in F-O-U-R) credit cards. But because I don’t know how to control myself, I drowned in credit card debts that until now I have not even started paying. I don’t have any plans of abandoning my debts. I have plans to settle one or two cards this year.

Credit cards really need discipline just like in spending cash. I realized that it’s better to pay in cash rather than charging everything to these tempting little cards. But sometimes, credit cards just come in handy if only coupled with discipline and self-control. Credit cards can become one of our best friends if we know where and when to use them.

Cash or card. It doesn’t matter how you pay. Everything about money really needs discipline. It’s one of the traits that one needs to have to succeed in life not just financially but in all other aspects of life. What do you think?

Honesty: Always the best policy

My 2010 was one of the worst years I ever had in my life. From financial disasters to family crisis, it was one roller coaster of emotions.

My 2011 started out with a very big responsibility to handle. I got promoted, I got married and we (my hubby and I) moved out from his parent's house. We opted to rent because we believe that privacy is priceless. :)

As I've mentioned earlier, I've experienced financial problems last year. I have always been so stupid in handling money. It has always been my weakness. But I believe that I'm gonna get over it. I believe I can save enough for our future and for my mom as well.

Earlier ago, I took the courage to tell my husband that I am once again in a very freaking kind of financial disaster. Yes. I am. But I believe that I can resolve the issue. It only takes discipline and the will power to change.

My husband was not surprised at all but he was so disappointed. But in the end, he managed to forgive me and helped me re-align my financial goals. So, I listed all my payables and set the goal to settle at least 50% of it by April 17, 2011.

One step to move on from a financial mess is to be honest with your family members and with yourself as well. I've learned that no matter how I try to fix my financial problems, I end up having more and more debts. It's because I have always been in denial of the real situation.

I believe I can move out of debt. For now, I will settle all personal debts. By the second quarter, I pray that I can start settling my credit card debts.

I believe I can.